Ottilia
The Republic of Ottilia was a constituent state of the Calavarian Confederacy located on the west coast of the Kelp Sea. The nation had a rapidly developing economy with a socialist government. Despite being the youngest of the Calavarian member states is was one of the most populous and productive in the Confederacy. It had a unique mixture of both Calavarain and New Iotanian culture and the Ngoi church had a strong presence in both the political sphere and every day life. Etymology The Republic of Ottilia was named for the Ottilian mountain range that it is located in, which in turn were named after the Hekkian guru Ottilia. In the native Reffysca langauge it is called Melsgyrn which is roughly translated as the Mountains of Bone. Early New Iotanian settlers named many of the valleys of the region after the Ngoi Saints. History Pre-Colonial Era Before the arrival of the New Iotaninas the Ottilian highlands was usually refereed to as Melsgyrn the name given to them by the Reffysca tribes with roughly translates to The Mountains of Bone. There is not believed to have been any permanent settlements in the region though along with Walled Village it formed the south-eastern border of the grazing lands used by the Reffysca. Archaeological evidence suggests that the people of Walled Village may have conducted mining activities in the western fringes of the mountains but the steep slopes and harsh conditions meant that it was generally inhospitable. New Iotanian Settlement Among the first groups of New Iotaninan refugees to arrive in Centralia were the Ngoi of Gurrinea and though many chose to make their hope on Centralia others were quick to leave the island to the already rapidly growing colonies of Hekkia and Reuselerria in the south. When the vast mineral wealth of Ottilia was first noticed many Gurrinean Ngoi moved there expecting that the area would soon be developed by the South Severian Confederation and their colony here would be supported. However the Confederation's interests were focused elsewhere and the expected development never came. What did remain though were small Ngoi mining and farming communities in the more hospitable valleys. Here contact was established for the first time between New Iotanians and Calavaria through the nomadic Reffysca living in the plains to the north and east. Trade between the Ngoi communities and nomads was quick to develop and news spread of the colonisers throughout the Calavari sea. Fort Temezi When Caine had united the island states of Calavaria and began his campaign in the southern jungles one of the key parts of his strategy was to bring the Reffysca into an alliance with his Confederacy in the form of the Autumn treaty. This meant that effectively Confederate control extended as far as the border with Ottilia. At the same time the first diplomatic relationships between the Confederacy and New Itoaninas had just been formed when a delegation from Red Pepperland had assisted in opening up a nether route between Apferton and Walled Village. This was long before the boom in the Calavarian nether network and transport method was not yet trusted. The majority of trade in the region was still conducted by boat between the many islands and the prevailing thought at the time was that in order to properly establish trade with the New Iotanians a Severian port would be necessary. Given the large landmass between the two seas many proposals were considered about how best to bridge the gap. Industrialist Paisley Dalton came to Caine with a plan to establish a railway that stretched the entire length of Reffysca territory to Ottilia where a fort could be constructed to watch over a new trading post. Caine agreed to this plan and over the next few years it began to take shape. When Dalton first visited the St Jemima valley he was delighted when he spoke with the local Ngoi settlers about the mineral wealth under the mountains and immediately decided on this as the location for his settlement. The first military planners arrived soon after to construct a fort. The fort was never constructed though. Instead Dalton used the military engineers to create a mining complex with a defensive wall. Though no fort ever really existed the settlement still took the planned name of the fort - Fort Temezi. As development began on the railway it was very clear to Dalton that there would be much more money to be made in the extraction of the natural resources of Ottilia than the railway could ever generate and his began to focus his effort more and more on the industrial growth of the settlement. Progress on the railway slowed dramatically as Dalton's attention was diverted elsewhere and iron shortages crippled the project. Despite this Fort Temezi became a boom town and attracted large amount of the already present Ngoi as well as Calavarians looking for a new life in Severia. The settlement also became host to a successful tourist industry. The Crisis In the Confederacy Despite the rapid economic growth of Fort Temezi Dalton was quickly falling out of favour in the west. His railway project had stalled to a halt and with the rapid expansion of the nether network the project was looking less and less relevant. Many back in Palmerstown were beginning to see Fort Temezi as less of a Calavarain colony and more as Dalton's personal fief. Dissent was also growing in Fort Temezi as the local Ngoi were unionising and becoming increasingly sceptical of Dalton running of the region. Just before the death of Emily Caine a union leader called Harry Carloteski had rapidly risen in popularity in Ottilia and was looking to challenge Dalton in the elections to the Confederate Council. When the election were suspended Carloteski expressed his condolences for Caine's loss and ensured that none of the unions would try to take advantage of the situation. However when the government collapsed only weeks later a miners strike was called over concerns about Dalton's treatment of workers. Carloteski continued to support the government though and made it the unions' priority to work to regain stability. Things changed dramatically when Nagastan declared its independence and the region began to descend into civil war. Carloteski called for the people to rise up against Dalton and form militias in order to prepare for the feared South Severain invasion. Dalton fled from the settlement and the workers seized control of the factories and converted them from creating goods such as furniture to weaponry to arm the populace. Defences were hastily erected on the southern border and the armed citizens were organised into the Peoples Defence Force in Ottilia (PDFO). In the initial years of the crisis Ottilia aligned itself with Blech's Southern coalition and was a major supplier of weaponry to the Southern Army. They even remained loyal after Blech's humiliating defeat at the battle of Port Katherine. This brought the conflict much closer to home though as the Reffysca under Chief Darsee switched sides to support Prince Harry's faction. With the neighbouring Reffysca now enemies the PDFO began a campaign to secure the northern border and also to restore the overland link to Blech's southern territory. This was a long and drawn out conflict but the modernised equipment and vast industrial production that Ottilia had been building allowed them to compete with the hit and run guerrilla tactics Chief Darsee employed. Eventually Darsee and the rest of the tribal leadership were captured and a People's Justice Committee found them guilty of treason against the Confederacy. Though the Reffysca lands remain their own region they have since this time remained under the occupation of the PDFO. . This settlement was founded by the People's Committee for Mining and Energy and used forced labour of Reffysca political prisoners.]] In 122 another set of rumours began to circulate about South Severian Intervention and in response the PDFO seized control of the ancient fortifications at Walled Village. This once neutral site with great archaeological significance became a key component in the Ottilian southern wall. Following the execution of Blech Ottilia became briefly involved with the Ullston movement before aligning themselves with the Second Southern Coalition. Ottilia would remain neutral during The Long April and were relatively unaffected by the naval blockades in Calavaria proper. Ottilia became a full member of the Confederacy in 127 at the first Confederate Convention during which it was a signatory of the Pendleville Constitution. Politics Category:Severia